Optical touch apparatus capable of detecting displacement and optical touch method thereof

ABSTRACT

An optical touch apparatus includes a first light source, a second light source, a light guide device, a light reflecting device and an image sensing module. The first light source emits first light beam which travels within the light guide device and is reflective by an object close to or in contact with a surface of the light guide device to become a first image light beam. The first image light beam is reflected by a light reflecting device. The image sensing module receives the first image light beam. The second light source emits a second light beam, wherein when the optical touch apparatus moves on a working surface, the second light beam is reflective by the working surface to form a second image light beam which is received by the same image sensing module.

CROSS REFERENCE

The present invention claims priority to TW 101108993, filed on Mar. 16,2012.

BACKGROUND OF THE INVENTION

1. Field of Invention

The present invention relates to a touch apparatus and a touch method;particularly, it relates to an optical touch apparatus and an opticaltouch method.

2. Description of Related Art

With the rapid development of the computer industry, the conventionalmechanic mouse using a wheel has been replaced by the optical mouseusing an optical sensor. Although the mechanic wheel mouse isinexpensive and operates by a very simple principle, dust and dirt tendto enter into the roller to cause malfunction. Therefore, it is requiredto clean the inside of the mouse frequently, which is inconvenient inuse.

Because the technology for manufacturing the optical mouse is mature andthe price of the optical mouse is affordable, the optical mouse hasreplaced the conventional wheel mouse to become the consumer's prioritychoice of the mouse. The optical mouse does not need cleaning and isabrasion-resistant. In addition, unlike the wheel mouse, the opticalmouse does not use mechanical components which lose accuracy as timegoes on. Accordingly, the optical mouse has become an inevitable trendin the mouse market.

In addition, the touch-sensing mouse provides users with a moreintuitive human-machine interface, which allows users to input commandsaccording to the gestures of the finger object, as referring to thecapacitive touch control of U.S. Pat. No. 7,808,478 and the opticaltouch control of U.S. Pat. No. 6,456,275.

SUMMARY OF THE INVENTION

The present invention provides an optical touch apparatus havingfunctions of optical touch control and displacement detection.

The present invention provides an optical touch method, which isapplicable in the above-mentioned optical touch apparatus.

Other objectives and advantages of the present invention can beunderstood from the disclosure of the specification.

To achieve one or more of the above and other objectives, from oneperspective, the present invention provides an optical touch apparatus.The optical touch apparatus comprises a first light source, a lightguide device, a light reflecting device, an image sensing module and asecond light source. The first light source is used for emitting a firstlight beam. The light guide device is disposed in a transmission path ofthe first light beam. The light guide device comprises a first surface,a second surface opposite to the first surface, and a side surfaceconnecting the first surface and the second surface. The first lightbeam enters the light guide device through the side surface, wherein thefirst light beam traveling within the light guide device is reflectiveby an object close to or in contact with the first surface so as to beconverted to a first image light beam emitting out from the secondsurface. The image sensing module is used for receiving the first imagelight beam and is disposed in a reflection transmission path of thefirst image light beam reflected by the light reflecting device. Thesecond light source is used for emitting a second light beam, whereinwhen the optical touch apparatus moves on a working surface, the secondlight beam is reflective by the working surface to form a second imagelight beam which is received by the image sensing module.

In one embodiment, the image sensing module includes an optical sensordevice for receiving the first image light beam and the second imagelight beam.

In one embodiment, the first image light beam and the second image lightbeam transmitted to the image sensing module partially overlap with eachother or do not overlap with each other.

In one embodiment, the optical touch apparatus further comprises a firsthousing. The first housing is disposed in the transmission path or thereflection transmission path of the first image light beam and also in atransmission path of the second image light beam. The first housingincludes an inner space and at least one opening, wherein the imagesensing module is disposed in the inner space, and the image sensingmodule has a sensing surface facing the opening so as to receive thefirst image light beam and the second image light beam.

In one embodiment, the first housing includes a first opening and asecond opening, wherein the first opening is disposed in thetransmission path or the reflection transmission path of the first imagelight beam, and the second opening is disposed in the transmission pathof the second image light beam.

In one embodiment, the image sensing module includes a first opticalsensor device for receiving the first image light beam and a secondoptical sensor device for receiving the second image light beam.

In one embodiment, the first optical sensor device has a first sensingsurface facing the working surface and the second optical sensor devicehas a second sensing surface facing the working surface.

In one embodiment, the optical touch apparatus further comprises asecond housing, which accommodates the first light source, the lightguide device, the light reflecting device, the image sensing module andthe second light source. The second housing includes a first surface anda second surface opposite to the first surface. The light guide deviceis disposed close to the first surface of the housing, and the lightreflecting device is disposed close to the second surface of thehousing, and the image sensing module has a sensing surface facing thesecond surface of the housing.

In one embodiment, the light reflecting device includes a convergingmirror, a plane mirror or a convex mirror.

In one embodiment, the optical touch apparatus further comprises a lightsource control module and a processing unit. The light source controlmodule is electrically connected to the first light source and thesecond light source to control intensities and timings of the firstlight beam emitted from the first light source and the second light beamemitted from the second light source, respectively. The processing unitis used for determining whether to detect a displacement of the opticaltouch apparatus on the working surface or to detect a movement of theobject on or above the first surface of the light guide device accordingto image signals captured by the image sensing module.

In one embodiment, the optical touch apparatus further comprises atransmission unit, wherein the transmission unit is coupled to theprocessing unit, for outputting a result of detecting the displacementof the optical touch apparatus on the working surface or a result ofdetecting a movement of the object on or above the first surface of thelight guide device.

In one embodiment, the optical touch apparatus further comprises anacceleration sensing unit, wherein the acceleration sensing unit is usedfor detecting a displacement of the optical touch apparatus on theworking surface.

From another perspective, the present invention provides an opticaltouch method for use in the above-mentioned optical touch apparatus. Theoptical touch method comprises the following steps. First, the secondlight source emits the second light beam and the image sensing modulecaptures image signals. Next, it is determined whether to detect adisplacement of the optical touch apparatus on the working surface or todetect a movement of the object on or above the first surface of thelight guide device according to the image signals captured by the imagesensing module. When it is determined that there is a displacement ofthe optical touch apparatus on the working surface, a detection resultof the displacement of the optical touch apparatus is outputted. When itis determined that there is no displacement of the optical touchapparatus on the working surface, the first light source emits the firstlight beam and the image sensing module captures image signals to detectthe movement of the object on or above the first surface of the lightguide device; a detection result of the movement of the object isoutputted.

From yet another perspective, the present invention provides an opticaltouch method for use in the above-mentioned optical touch apparatus. Theoptical touch method comprises the following steps. First, it isdetermined whether the optical touch apparatus moves on the workingsurface by the acceleration sensing unit. When the acceleration sensingunit detects and finds that the optical touch apparatus moves on theworking surface, the second light source emits the second light beam andthe image sensing module captures image signals. Next, detecting adisplacement of the optical touch apparatus on the working surfaceaccording to image signals captured by the image sensing module so as tooutput a detection result of the displacement of the optical touchapparatus. When the acceleration sensing unit does not find that theoptical touch apparatus moves on the working surface, the first lightsource emits the first light beam and the image sensing module capturesimage signals. Next, a movement of the object on or above the firstsurface of the light guide device is detected according to image signalscaptured by the image sensing module, so as to output a detection resultof the movement of the object.

From still another perspective, the present invention provides anoptical touch apparatus having a top surface and a bottom surface. Theoptical touch apparatus comprises a first light source, a lightreflecting device, an image sensing module and a second light source.The first light source is used for emitting a first light beam towardthe top surface, wherein the first light beam is reflective by an objectclose to or in contact with the top surface so as to be converted to afirst image light beam emitting toward the bottom surface. The lightreflecting device is disposed in a transmission path of the first imagelight beam to reflect the first image light beam. The image sensingmodule is used for receiving the first image light beam and is disposedin a reflection transmission path of the first image light beamreflected by the light reflecting device. The second light source isused for emitting a second light beam toward the bottom surface, whereinwhen the optical touch apparatus moves on a working surface, the secondlight beam is reflective by the working surface to form a second imagelight beam which is received by the image sensing module.

In view of the above, the present invention possesses the followingadvantages and features. First, the present invention employs the lightguide plate and the light reflecting device, so that a first image lightbeam carrying the touch control information and a second image lightbeam carrying the displacement information of the optical touchapparatus can be transmitted to the same image sensing module. Thedisplacement of the optical touch apparatus on the working surface andthe movement of the object on or above the first surface of the lightguide device can be individually or simultaneously detected byprocessing the image signals captured by the image sensing module. Thatis, the optical touch apparatus can provide both the touch control andthe displacement detection functions. In some embodiments, the opticaltouch apparatus can provide the touch control and the displacementdetection functions by employing only one optical sensor device.

In addition, when there are plural optical sensor devices (e.g., twooptical sensor devices), their sensing surfaces can be arranged to facethe same surface such as the working surface by arranging thetransmission paths of the light. Thus, these optical sensor devices canbe manufactured on the same substrate or assembled in the same module(e.g., a housing), which not only reduces the manufacturing cost butalso decreases the required volume.

The objectives, technical details, features, and effects of the presentinvention will be better understood with regard to the detaileddescription of the embodiments below with reference to the accompanyingdrawings.

BRIEF DESCRIPTION OF THE DRAWINGS

FIG. 1 shows a schematic view of an optical touch apparatus according toan embodiment of the present invention.

FIG. 2A is a control block diagram of the optical touch apparatus ofFIG. 1.

FIG. 2B and FIG. 2C show different situations of the first image lightbeam and the second image light beam on an optical sensor deviceaccording to different embodiments of the present invention.

FIG. 3 shows a schematic view of an optical touch apparatus according toanother embodiment of the present invention.

FIG. 4 shows a schematic view of an optical touch apparatus according toyet another embodiment of the present invention.

FIG. 5 shows a schematic view of an optical touch apparatus according tostill another embodiment of the present invention.

FIG. 6 shows a flowchart of an optical touch method according to anembodiment of the present invention.

FIG. 7 shows a schematic view of an optical touch apparatus according toa further other embodiment of the present invention.

FIG. 8 is a control block diagram of the optical touch apparatus of FIG.7.

FIG. 9 shows a flowchart of an optical touch method according to anotherembodiment of the present invention.

FIG. 10 shows a schematic view of an optical touch apparatus accordingto still another embodiment of the present invention.

DESCRIPTION OF THE PREFERRED EMBODIMENTS

The above and other technical details, features and effects of theinvention will be better understood with regard to the detaileddescription of the embodiments below with reference to the accompanyingdrawings. In the description, the words relate to directions such as“on”, “below”, “left”, “right”, “forward”, “backward”, etc. are used toillustrate relative orientations in the drawings and should not beconsidered as limiting in any way.

FIG. 1 shows a schematic view of an optical touch apparatus according toan embodiment of the present invention. FIG. 2A is a control blockdiagram of the optical touch apparatus of FIG. 1. Referring both to FIG.1 and FIG. 2A, the optical touch apparatus 100 of this embodimentcomprises a first light source 110, a light guide device 120, a lightreflecting device 130, an image sensing module 140, and a second lightsource 150. The first light source 110 is used for emitting a firstlight beam. L110. In this embodiment, the first light source 110 is forexample a light emitting diode, but the first light source 110 can beany other appropriate light emitting device in other embodiments. Inaddition, the wavelength of the first light beam L110 can be determinedby the design. In this embodiment, the first light beam L110 is forexample an invisible light beam (e.g., infrared wavelength), but it canbe of any other appropriate wavelength (e.g., a wavelength of visiblelight).

Referring again to FIG. 1 and FIG. 2A, the light guide device 120 isdisposed in a transmission path of the first light beam L110. The lightguide device 120 comprises a first surface S122, a second surface S124opposite to the first surface S122, and a side surface S126 connectingthe first surface S122 and the second surface S124. Specifically, thelight guide device 120 of this embodiment is for example an edge-typelight guide plate having an edge light entrance, wherein the edge-typelight guide plate can be a flat-type light guide plate or a wedge-typelight guide plate. In this embodiment, an edge-type flat light guideplate is shown as an example, but it is also practicable to use awedge-type light guide plate in other embodiments. As shown in FIG. 1,the first light beam L110 enters the light guide device 120 through theside surface S126 because the light guide device 120 is an edge-typelight guide plate. As such, the first light beam L110 traveling withinthe light guide device 120 is reflective by an object 101 close to or incontact with the first surface S122 so as to be converted to a firstimage light beam L112 emitting out from the second surface S124 (asshown in FIG. 1).

In addition, since the light reflecting device 130 is disposed in atransmission path of the first image light beam L112 to reflect thefirst image light beam L110, the image sensing module 140, which isdisposed in a reflection transmission path of the reflected first imagelight beam L110 reflected by the light reflecting device 130, receivesthe first image light beam L112. In this embodiment, the image sensingmodule 140 includes for example an optical sensor device 142. If anobject 101 is close to or in contact with the first surface S122 of thelight guide device 120, image signals of the object 101 will be detectedand captured by the optical sensor device 142 of the image sensingmodule 140 (as shown in FIG. 1). As such, the optical touch apparatus100 of this embodiment is capable of providing optical touch controlfunctions (such as gesture control, click control, or cursor control,etc.) by capturing the motion images generated by the object 101. Inthis embodiment, the light reflecting device 130 is for example but notlimited to a converging mirror, but it can be any other light reflectingdevice in other embodiments such as but not limited to a plane mirror ora convex mirror.

In addition, the second light source 150 is used for emitting a secondlight beam L150, wherein when the optical touch apparatus 100 moves on aworking surface S1, the second light beam L150 is reflective by theworking surface S1 to form a second image light beam L152 which isreceived by the optical sensor device 142 of the image sensing module140. That is, when a user moves the optical touch apparatus 100 on theworking surface S1, the image of the working surface S1 which changesalong with the displacement of the optical touch apparatus 100 isdetected and captured by the optical sensor device 142 of the imagesensing module 140 (as shown in FIG. 1). As such, the optical touchapparatus 100 of this embodiment is capable of providing an opticalcontrol function (such as cursor control) by the image change of theworking surface S1 due to the displacement of the optical touchapparatus 100. In this embodiment, the second light source 150 is forexample a light emitting diode, but the second light source 150 can beany other appropriate light emitting device in other embodiments. Inaddition, the wavelength of the second light beam L150 can be determinedby the design. In this embodiment, the second light beam L150 is forexample an invisible light beam (e.g., infrared wavelength), but it canbe of any other appropriate wavelength (e.g., a wavelength of visiblelight).

Note that the first image light beam L112 and the second image lightbeam L152 transmitted to the optical sensor device 142 can partiallyoverlap with each other or do not overlap with each other, as shown inFIG. 2B and FIG. 2C. More specifically, FIG. 2B illustrates that thefirst image light beam L112 and the second image light beam L152transmitted to the optical sensor device 142 partially overlap with eachother. The first image light beam L112 has a first image region I1formed on the sensing surface 142 a of the optical sensor device 142 andthe second image light beam L152 has a second image region I2 formed onthe sensing surface 142 a of the optical sensor device 142, wherein thefirst image region I1 and the second image region I2 partially overlapwith each other (as shown in FIG. 2B). However, if the angle of theincident light is appropriately designed, the first image light beamL112 and the second image light beam L152 transmitted to the opticalsensor device 142 will not overlap with each other (as shown in FIG.2C).

In the optical touch apparatus 100 of this embodiment, since the imagesensing module 140 is disposed in the transmission path or thereflection transmission path of the first image light beam L112 and alsoin a transmission path of the second image light beam L152, it ispossible to detect object touching and to detect a displacement of theoptical touch apparatus 100 individually or simultaneously according tothe images (e.g., the above-mentioned first image region I1 and secondimage region I2) captured by the image sensing module 140, toindividually or simultaneously perform a click control and a cursorcontrol. With regard to the determination of whether to perform touchcontrol or to detect a displacement of the optical touch apparatus 100,this will be explained in more detail later.

In order for the first image light beam L112 and the second image lightbeam L152 to be transmitted to the image sensing module 140, the opticaltouch apparatus 100 may further comprise a housing 160, wherein thehousing 160 is disposed in the transmission path or the reflectiontransmission path of the first image light beam L112 and also in atransmission path of the second image light beam L152. The housing 160includes an inner space 162, a first opening 164 and a second opening166 (as shown in FIG. 1). The image sensing module 140 is disposed inthe inner space 162. The image sensing module 140 has a sensing surface142 a facing the first opening 164 and the second opening 166 so as toreceive the first image light beam L112 and the second image light beamL152. More specifically, the first opening 164 is disposed in thetransmission path or the reflection transmission path of the first imagelight beam. L112, and the second opening 166 is disposed in thetransmission path of the second image light beam L152 (as shown in FIG.1). In this embodiment, the housing 160 can be a non-transparent housingso as to prevent stray light from entering the inner space 162. Thus,the image quality formed on the optical sensor device 142 of the imagesensing module 140 by the first image light beam. L112 and the secondimage light beam. L152 will not be affected by the stray light.

In this embodiment, the optical touch apparatus 100 further comprises alight source control module 172 and a processing unit 174, in order tocontrol the intensities and timings of the light emitted from the firstlight source 110 and the light emitted from the second light source 150,and to process the images formed on the optical sensor device 142 (asshown in FIG. 2). The light source control module 172 is electricallyconnected to the first light source 110 and the second light source 150to control the timing, duration and intensity of the light emitted fromthe first light source 110 and from the second light source 150,respectively. For example, the first light source 110 will be turned ONif it is intended to sense the touch of the object 101. Likewise, thesecond light source 150 will be turned ON if it is intended to sense thedisplacement of the optical touch apparatus 100 on the working surface.In addition, the processing unit 174 determines whether to detect adisplacement of the optical touch apparatus 100 on the working surfaceS1 or to detect a movement indicating a touch control input of theobject 101 on the first surface S122 of the light guide device 120according to image signals captured by the image sensing module 140,wherein the movement includes in-plane movement or hovering movement.The optical touch apparatus 100 may further comprise a transmission unit176 coupled to the processing unit 174, for outputting either adetection result of the displacement of the optical touch apparatus 100on the working surface S1 or a detection result of a movement of theobject 101 on the first surface S122 of the light guide device 120,which is transmitted to a display device (not shown), for example forcursor control, click control or gesture control.

In this embodiment, the optical touch apparatus 100 further comprises ahousing 180, which accommodates the first light source 110, the lightguide device 120, the light reflecting device 130, the image sensingmodule 140 and the second light source 150. The housing 180 includes afirst surface S182 and a second surface S184 opposite to the firstsurface S182. The light guide device 120 is disposed close to the firstsurface S182 of the housing 180 and the light reflecting device 130 isdisposed close to the second surface S184 of the housing 180. The imagesensing module 140 has a sensing surface 142 a facing the second surfaceS184 of the housing 180 (as shown in FIG. 1).

In view of the above, the optical touch apparatus 100 of this embodimentemploys the light guide plate 120 and the light reflecting device 130,so that the first image light beam L112 carrying the touch controlinformation and the second image light beam L152 carrying thedisplacement information of the optical touch apparatus 100 can betransmitted to the image sensing module 140. The displacement of theoptical touch apparatus 100 on the working surface S1 and the movementof the object 101 on the first surface S122 of the light guide device120 can be individually or simultaneously detected by processing theimage signals captured by the image sensing module 140. That is, theoptical touch apparatus 100 of this embodiment can perform both opticaltouch control function and displacement detection function. Note thatthe optical touch apparatus 100 of this embodiment is capable ofperforming both optical touch control function and displacementdetection function by only one optical sensor device.

FIG. 3 shows a schematic view of an optical touch apparatus according toanother embodiment of the present invention. Referring both to FIG. 1and FIG. 3, the optical touch apparatus 200 of this embodiment issubstantially the same as the optical touch apparatus 100 of the firstembodiment, but is different in that the housing 260 of the opticaltouch apparatus 200 includes only one opening 264, wherein both thefirst image light beam L112 and the second image light beam L152 passthrough the opening 264 to be transmitted to the image sensing module140. The optical touch apparatus 200 of this embodiment operatesaccording to substantially the same mechanism as the optical touchapparatus 100 of the first embodiment, so it has substantially the sameadvantages and efficacies as the optical touch apparatus 100, which arenot redundantly repeated here.

FIG. 4 shows a schematic view of an optical touch apparatus according toyet another embodiment of the present invention. Referring both to FIG.1 and FIG. 4, the optical touch apparatus 300 of this embodiment issubstantially the same as the optical touch apparatus 100 of the firstembodiment, but is different in that the image sensing module 340 of theoptical touch apparatus 300 includes a first optical sensor device 342and a second optical sensor device 344. The first image light beam L112passes through the opening 164 to be transmitted to the first opticalsensor device 342. The second image light beam L152 pass through theopening 166 to be transmitted to the second optical sensor device 344.The first optical sensor device 342 has a first sensing surface 342 afacing the second surface S184 of the housing 180 so as to receive thefirst image light beam L112. The second optical sensor device 344 has asecond sensing surface 344 a facing the second surface S184 of thehousing 180 so as to receive the second image light beam L152. The lightreflecting device 330 of the optical touch apparatus 300 is shown forexample as a plane mirror, but it is not limited thereto and can be anyother light reflecting device, such as a light reflecting sheet. Theoptical touch apparatus 300 of this embodiment operates according tosubstantially the same mechanism as the optical touch apparatus 100 ofthe first embodiment, so it has substantially the same advantages andefficacies as the optical touch apparatus 100, which are not redundantlyrepeated here.

FIG. 5 shows a schematic view of an optical touch apparatus according tostill another embodiment of the present invention. Referring both toFIG. 4 and FIG. 5, the optical touch apparatus 400 of this embodiment issubstantially the same as the above-mentioned optical touch apparatus300, but is different in that the housing 460 of the optical touchapparatus 400 includes only one opening 464, wherein both the firstimage light beam L112 and the second image light beam L152 pass throughthe opening 464 to be transmitted to the first optical sensor device 342and the second optical sensor device 344. The optical touch apparatus400 of this embodiment operates according to substantially the samemechanism as the above-mentioned optical touch apparatus 300, so it hassubstantially the same advantages and efficacies as the optical touchapparatus 100, which are not redundantly repeated here.

The present invention also provides an optical touch method, which isapplicable in the above-mentioned optical touch apparatus 100, 200, 300,or 400. The optical touch method of this embodiment comprises the stepsshown in FIG. 6. However, the present invention is not limited to thesequence of the steps shown in FIG. 6.

First, as shown in the step S102 of FIG. 6, in order not to turn ON thefirst light source 110 and the second light source 150 at the same timeso as to reduce unnecessary power consumption, this embodiment emits thesecond light beam L150 by the second light source 150 and captures imagesignals by the image sensing module 140 or the optical sensor device344.

Next, as shown in the step S104 of FIG. 6, this embodiment determineswhether to detect a displacement of the optical touch apparatus 100,200, 300, or 400 on the working surface S1 or to detect a movement ofthe object 101 on the first surface S122 of the light guide device 120according to the image signals captured by the image sensing module 140or 340 (the optical sensor device 142 or optical sensor devices 342 and344).

More specifically, as shown in the steps S101 and S103 of FIG. 6, whenit is determined that there is a displacement of the optical touchapparatus 100, 200, 300 or 400 on the working surface S1, a detectionresult of the displacement of the optical touch apparatus 100, 200, 300or 400 is outputted. As shown in the steps S101, S105, S107, S109 ofFIG. 6, when it is determined that there is no displacement of theoptical touch apparatus 100, 200, 300 or 400 on the working surface S1,this embodiment emits the first light beam L110 by the first lightsource 110 and captures image signals by the image sensing module 140 orthe first optical sensor device 342 to detect the movement of the object101 on the first surface S122 of the light guide device 120, and outputsa detection result of the movement of the object 101.

It should be noted that in stead of detecting the displacement of theoptical touch apparatus 100, 200, 300 or 400 and the movement of theobject 101 according to the above-mentioned steps, the first lightsource 110 and the second light source 150 may be turned ON at the sametime, and the displacement of the optical touch apparatus 100, 200, 300or 400 and the movement of the object 101 individually or simultaneouslyin other embodiments.

FIG. 7 shows a schematic view of an optical touch apparatus according tostill another embodiment of the present invention. FIG. 8 is a controlblock diagram of the optical touch apparatus of FIG. 7. Referring toFIG. 4, FIG. 7 and FIG. 8, the optical touch apparatus 500 of thisembodiment is substantially the same as the above-mentioned opticaltouch apparatus 300, but is different in that the optical touchapparatus 500 further comprises an acceleration sensing unit 510 fordetecting a movement of the optical touch apparatus 500 on the workingsurface S1. In this embodiment, the acceleration sensing unit 510 can bea one-dimensional acceleration sensing unit or a two-dimensionalacceleration sensing unit, and for example is a MEMS sensor unitmanufactured by CMOS process. As shown in FIG. 7 and FIG. 8, the opticaltouch apparatus 500 determines whether the optical touch apparatus 500moves on the working surface S1 by the acceleration sensing unit 510,and turns ON the second light source 150 to detect the displacement ofthe optical touch apparatus 500 according to the determination.

In other words, the optical touch apparatus 500 of this embodimentoperate according to substantially the same mechanism as theabove-mentioned optical touch apparatus 300, except that the opticaltouch apparatus 500 employs an acceleration sensing unit 510 to detectthe displacement of the optical touch apparatus 500, which enhances thedetection accuracy. Accordingly, the optical touch apparatus 500 of thisembodiment has substantially the same advantages and efficacies as theabove-mentioned optical touch apparatus 300, which are not redundantlyrepeated here. It is noteworthy that the above-mentioned optical touchapparatus 100,200,400 may also employ an acceleration sensing unit 510and operate according to the above-mentioned mechanism, which is notredundantly repeated here.

The present invention also provides an optical touch method, which isapplicable in the above-mentioned optical touch apparatus 500. Theoptical touch method of this embodiment comprises the steps shown inFIG. 9. However, the present invention is not limited to the sequence ofthe steps shown in FIG. 9.

First, as shown in the step S201 of FIG. 9, in order not to turn ON thefirst light source 110 and the second light source 150 at the same timeso as to reduce unnecessary power consumption, this embodiment detectswhether the optical touch apparatus 500 moves on the working surface S1by the acceleration sensing unit 510.

Next, as shown in the steps S203 of FIG. 9, this embodiment determineswhether the optical touch apparatus 500 moves on the working surface S1by the acceleration sensing unit 510. If the acceleration sensing unit510 detects and finds that the optical touch apparatus 500 moves on theworking surface S1, this embodiment emits the second light beam L150 bythe second light source 150 and captures image signals by the secondoptical sensor device 344. Next, as shown in the steps S205, S207 andS209 of FIG. 9, this embodiment detects a displacement of the opticaltouch apparatus 500 on the working surface S1 according to image signalscaptured by the second optical sensor device 344 so as to output adetection result of the displacement of the optical touch apparatus 500.

As shown in the steps S202 of FIG. 9, if the acceleration sensing unit510 does not find that the optical touch apparatus 500 moves on theworking surface S1, this embodiment emits the first light beam. L112 bythe first light source 110 and captures image signals by the firstoptical sensor device 342. Next, as shown in the steps S204 and S206 ofFIG. 9, this embodiment detects a movement of the object 101 on thefirst surface S122 of the light guide device 120 according to imagesignals captured by the first optical sensor device 342 so as to outputa detection result of the movement of the object 101.

FIG. 10 shows a schematic view of an optical touch apparatus accordingto still another embodiment of the present invention. Referring both toFIG. 1 and FIG. 10, the optical touch apparatus 600 of this embodimentis substantially the same as the above-mentioned optical touch apparatus100, but is different in that the optical touch apparatus 600 does notemploy a light guide device 120. That is, the first light source 110emits a first light beam L110 toward a top surface S602 of the opticaltouch apparatus 600. The optical touch apparatus 600 has atop surfaceS602 and a bottom surface S604. The above-mentioned first light source110, light reflecting device 130, image sensing module 140 and secondlight source 150 are all disposed in the optical touch apparatus 600.

In the optical touch apparatus 600, the first light source 100 is usedfor emitting a first light beam L110 toward the top surface S602,wherein the first light beam L110 is reflective by an object 101 closeto or in contact with the top surface S602 so as to be converted to afirst image light beam L112 emitting toward the bottom surface S604. Inaddition, the light reflecting device 130 is disposed in a transmissionpath of the first image light beam L112 to reflect the first image lightbeam L112. The image sensing module 140 is used for receiving the firstimage light beam. L112 and is disposed in a reflection transmission pathof the first image light beam L112 reflected by the light reflectingdevice 130. In addition, the second light source 150 is used foremitting a second light beam L150 toward the bottom surface S604,wherein when the optical touch apparatus 600 moves on a working surfaceS1, the second light beam L150 is reflective by the working surface S1to form a second image light beam L152 which is received by a opticalsensor device 142 of the image sensing module 140 (as shown in FIG. 10).

In view of the above, the optical touch apparatus 600 of this embodimentoperates according to substantially the same mechanism as the opticaltouch apparatus 100 of the first embodiment operate, except that theoptical touch apparatus 600 employs the first light source 110 to emitthe first light beam L110 toward the top surface S602 of the opticaltouch apparatus 600. This embodiment does not employ a light guidedevice 120, which may save the cost of the light guide device 120.Accordingly, the optical touch apparatus 600 has substantially the sameadvantages and efficacies as the optical touch apparatus 100 of thefirst embodiment, which are not redundantly repeated here. Thisembodiment can determine whether to detect a displacement of the opticaltouch apparatus 600 or to detect a movement of the object 101 accordingto the above-mentioned mechanism, which is not redundantly repeatedhere.

In view of the above, the present invention possesses the followingadvantages and features. First, the present invention employs the lightguide plate and the light reflecting device, so that a first image lightbeam carrying the touch control information and a second image lightbeam carrying the displacement information of the optical touchapparatus can be transmitted to the same image sensing module. Thedisplacement of the optical touch apparatus on the working surface andthe movement of the object on or above the first surface of the lightguide device can be individually or simultaneously detected byprocessing the image signals captured by the image sensing module. Thatis, the optical touch apparatus can provide both the touch control andthe displacement detection functions. In some embodiments, the opticaltouch apparatus can provide the touch control and the displacementdetection functions by employing only one optical sensor device.

In addition, when there are plural optical sensor devices (e.g., twooptical sensor devices), their sensing surfaces can be arranged to facethe same surface such as the working surface by arranging thetransmission paths of the light. Thus, these optical sensor devices canbe manufactured on the same substrate or assembled in the same module(e.g., a housing), which not only reduces the manufacturing cost butalso decreases the required volume.

The present invention has been described in considerable detail withreference to certain preferred embodiments thereof. It should beunderstood that the description is for illustrative purpose, not forlimiting the scope of the present invention. An embodiment or a claim ofthe present invention does not need to achieve all the objectives oradvantages of the present invention. The title and abstract are providedfor assisting searches but not for limiting the scope of the presentinvention. In view of the foregoing, the spirit of the present inventionshould cover all such and other modifications and variations, whichshould be interpreted to fall within the scope of the following claimsand their equivalents.

1.-12. (canceled)
 13. An optical touch method for use in an opticaltouch apparatus which comprises: a first light source for emitting afirst light beam; a light guide device disposed in a transmission pathof the first light beam, the light guide device comprising a firstsurface, a second surface opposite to the first surface, and a sidesurface connecting the first surface and the second surface, the firstlight beam entering the light guide device through the side surface,wherein the first light beam traveling within the light guide device isreflected by an object close to or in contact with the first surface soas to be converted to a first image light beam emitting out from thesecond surface; a light reflecting device, which is disposed in atransmission path of the first image light beam to reflect the firstimage light beam; an image sensing module for receiving the first imagelight beam, which is disposed in a reflection transmission path of thefirst image light beam reflected by the light reflecting device; and asecond light source for emitting a second light beam, wherein when theoptical touch apparatus moves on a working surface, the second lightbeam is reflected by the working surface to forma second image lightbeam which is received by the image sensing module, the optical touchmethod comprising: emitting the second light beam by the second lightsource and capturing image signals by the image sensing module; anddetect a displacement of the optical touch apparatus on the workingsurface according to the image signals captured by the image sensingmodule to determine whether or not to detect a movement of the object onor above the first surface of the light guide device, wherein: condition1: when a displacement of the optical touch apparatus on the workingsurface is detected, a detection result of the displacement of theoptical touch apparatus is outputted; and condition 2: when nodisplacement of the optical touch apparatus on the working surface isdetected, emitting the first light beam by the first light source andcapturing image signals by the image sensing module to detect themovement of the object on or above the first surface of the light guidedevice, and outputting a detection result of the movement of the object,wherein only one of conditions 1 and 2 exists at a same time.
 14. Anoptical touch method for use in the optical touch apparatus of claim 13,the optical touch apparatus further comprising an acceleration sensingunit for detecting a movement of the optical touch apparatus on theworking surface, the optical touch method comprising: determiningwhether the optical touch apparatus moves on the working surface by theacceleration sensing unit; when the acceleration sensing unit detectsand finds that the optical touch apparatus moves on the working surface,the optical touch method further comprising: emitting the second lightbeam by the second light source and capturing image signals by the imagesensing module; and detecting a displacement of the optical touchapparatus on the working surface according to image signals captured bythe image sensing module so as to output a detection result of thedisplacement of the optical touch apparatus; when the accelerationsensing unit detects does not find that the optical touch apparatusmoves on the working surface, the optical touch method furthercomprising: emitting the first light beam by the first light source andcapturing image signals by the image sensing module; and detecting amovement of the object on or above the first surface of the light guidedevice according to image signals captured by the image sensing moduleso as to output a detection result of the movement of the object.
 15. Anoptical touch apparatus having a top surface and a bottom surface, theoptical touch apparatus comprising: a first light source for emitting afirst light beam toward the top surface, wherein the first light beam isreflective by an object close to or in contact with the top surface soas to be converted to a first image light beam emitting toward thebottom surface; a light reflecting device, which is disposed in atransmission path of the first image light beam to reflect the firstimage light beam; an image sensing module for receiving the first imagelight beam, which is disposed in a reflection transmission path of thereflected first image light beam reflected by the light reflectingdevice; and a second light source for emitting a second light beamtoward the bottom surface, wherein when the optical touch apparatusmoves on a working surface, the second light beam is reflective by theworking surface to form a second image light beam which is received bythe image sensing module.
 16. The optical touch apparatus of claim 15,wherein the image sensing module includes an optical sensor device, forreceiving the first image light beam and the second image light beam.17. The optical touch apparatus of claim 15, wherein the first imagelight beam and the second image light beam transmitted to the imagesensing module partially overlap with each other or do not overlap witheach other.
 18. The optical touch apparatus of claim 15, furthercomprising: a housing disposed in the transmission path or thereflection transmission path of the first image light beam and also in atransmission path of the second image light beam, the housing includingan inner space and at least one opening, wherein the image sensingmodule is disposed in the inner space, and the image sensing module hasa sensing surface facing the opening so as to receive the first imagelight beam and the second image light beam.
 19. The optical touchapparatus of claim 15, wherein the image sensing module includes a firstoptical sensor device for receiving the first image light beam and asecond optical sensor device for receiving the second image light beam.20. The optical touch apparatus of claim 19, wherein the first opticalsensor device has a first sensing surface facing the working surface andthe second optical sensor device has a second sensing surface facing theworking surface.
 21. The optical touch apparatus of claim 15, furthercomprising: a housing, which accommodates the first light source, thelight guide device, the light reflecting device, the image sensingmodule and the second light source, wherein the housing includes a topsurface and a bottom surface opposite to the top surface, the lightguide device being disposed close to the top surface of the secondhousing, the light reflecting device being disposed close to the bottomsurface of the second housing, the image sensing module having a sensingsurface facing the bottom surface of the housing.
 22. The optical touchapparatus of claim 15, wherein the light reflecting device includes aconverging mirror, a plane mirror or a convex mirror.
 23. The opticaltouch apparatus of claim 15, further comprising: a light source controlmodule electrically connected to the first light source and the secondlight source to control intensities and timings of the first light beamemitted from the first light source and the second light beam emittedfrom the second light source, respectively; and a processing unit fordetermining whether to detect a displacement of the optical touchapparatus on the working surface or to detect a movement of the objecton or above the first surface of the light guide device according toimage signals captured by the image sensing module.
 24. The opticaltouch apparatus of claim 23, further comprising: a transmission unitcoupled to the processing unit, for outputting a result of detecting thedisplacement of the optical touch apparatus on the working surface or aresult of detecting a movement of the object on or above the firstsurface of the light guide device.